If it wasn’t for my teacher Ms Mdaka I never would have made it through my horrific 9 years of dropping in and out of highschool. Without her psychological and academic support, I would not be the social worker I am today. She went the extra mile to make sure I become something in life. But teachers should not have to carry this extra burden when they are already overburdened by having to cater for our educational needs with limited resources.

The Department of Basic Education developed a policy of inclusive education to standardize procedures to identify, assess and provide programmes for all learners who require additional support to enhance their participation and inclusion in schools, but have excluded school social work as a strategic lead in their provincial inclusive education and support education structures and plan.

I am Mfundo Ntandane, A Nguvu Collective Change Leader who is troubled by the high dropout rates of children in South Africa. I urge you to sign this petition to help me keep children in school by asking the National Department of Education in South Africa to hire and place specialist social workers in each schools across all the provinces.

According to the UNICEF (United Nations International Children’s Education Fund), about 250 000 school-going children drop out of school every year. This figure tripled to 750 000 during the COVID-19 pandemic. What push and pulls the children out of schools explains the effect of bio-psychosocial and forensic challenges that every child faces in South African schools in every province.

While our leaders deflect responsibility, our children are suffering, they need specialized bio-psycho-social and forensic services from qualified school social workers! Please sign and share this petition to join the call on the Minister Mrs Angelina Motsekga and Dr Granville Whittle of National Department of Basic Education in South Africa to incorporate school social work as a mental health profession to offer a framework for the provision of social Cohesion and Equity in Education and bio-psychosocial support to learners and teachers in schools.

If enough of us come together, we can put pressure on the department to recognize the urgent need for our children to receive psycho-social support at school and stop the dropouts.